I couldn’t turn around. I didn’t know how I could look him in the eye without breaking.
“This feels so real,” he said, sounding despondent. “It’s like when you were in Castle Freesias and we were—”
“On the road,” I said roughly. “Coming to me.”
“Yeah. Just like that.”
“I know.”
“Do you? Because I’ve dreamed of you. But never like this. I can see you. All of you. It’s not in a haze. It’s not—”
The sun set quickly. The night swallowed the day, and stars burst out across the sky above, David’s Dragon almost blinding. I wondered if he was watching. If all the gods were.
Footsteps approached from behind me, and I said, “Stop.”
He did. “Why? What is this? Is this—is this real? Oh my gods, Sam, is this—”
“I think so.”
“Fucking hell, where are—”
“Language. You’re a godsdamn knight of Verania. You need to—”
He choked wetly. “You don’t—Sam. Where are you? Right now. At this very moment. Tell me where you are.”
I sighed. “Camp HaveHeart.”
The sound he made reminded me of when he’d been pinned to the wall with a sword: deep and wounded, like it hurt more than anything. “You came back?”
“I told you I would.”
“But—that’s not…. I’m coming. We’re almost there. You wait. You don’t move a godsdamn muscle, you hear me?”
“I—”
“I mean it, Sam. You won’t like what happens if I get there and you’re not.”
That sent a hot chill down my spine. “But how can I know what happens if I’m not there to see it—”
“Sam.”
“Right. Not the time.”
“I’m so angry with you.”
I bowed my head.
His hand dropped on my shoulder. His forehead pressed against the back of my neck, and I shuddered at the feel of him, the weight. He breathed me in as I trembled.
“But I’m still coming for you,” he whispered against my skin.
“I know.”
“Why won’t you look at me?”
“I don’t know if I can.”
“Sam.”